Swipe Right by Tagan Shepard is a slow burn, friends-to-lovers romance that shows sometimes you have to go looking for love in order to realize it was right there all along.
Kieran Hall is lonely. Her husband left her when she came out as pansexual, and her relationship following that walked out, too. It’s no wonder she took some time away from romance, building her life and becoming comfortable. But now, she wants someone to share it with and decides to take the plunge into dating again.
With the help of her best friend, Penelope, Kieran signs up for a dating app, hoping to find the right person for her. Instead she ends up going on one bad date after another, falling further and further into frustration and despair. Luckily, Pen is always there to pick her up and dust her off. In fact, hanging out with Pen, and commiserating over her horrible dates, is much more exciting and fulfilling than the dates themselves. It’s not until one date points out to Kieran that the reason for all of these failed dates isn’t because she hasn’t found the right person yet, it’s because Pen has been the right person the whole time.
Will Kieran be able to see Pen as she was meant to be seen? Or will their friendship be too valuable to even consider crossing that line?
Pros And My Favourite Parts
The really cool aspect of this story is that Shepard shows us how these two women are so in love with each other through the little things they do together.
Kieran is a sweet, generous, and funny woman who’s had hard luck with love. She wants to get back out into the world and find that illusive “special someone” to share her comfortable life with. What she doesn’t realize, and simultaneously does realize, is that person is Penelope “Pen.” The entire story is from Kieran’s perspective, so you see just how much she loves Pen, even going so far as to allow her to set up Kieran’s dating profile, which becomes very telling later on. Not only does it highlight the unconditional trust Kieran has for Pen, it also allows the reader to get a sense of Pen’s true feelings for Kieran and what she believes are her most special qualities that only a person in love would notice and highlight.
On the flip side, Kieran continuously highlights all the little things Pen does to make her feel special, which she would love to get from any of the number of people she met on the dating app. Pen is kind, loyal, and intensely focused on her friends. Even with her health issues, she’s able to have a life that is fulfilling – professionally, sexually, and personally – all while making sure she doesn’t further exacerbate her condition. Pen’s one flaw is that she keeps people at arm’s length because she doesn’t want to disappoint anyone, and she fears that her condition will weigh down any partner. So, to have Pen as a lover, Kieran will have to work hard to break down her walls, and show Pen that she is worthy of love just like Kieran, and they can have it together.
Cons And Heads Up
If there’s one con with this story is that there will be high levels of frustration with Kieran. Seeing her have all these observations and emotions for Pen has you constantly wanting to scream at her, “You idiot! It’s obvious you should be with Pen!” And not just once, but multiple times you want to knock some sense into her. If I didn’t have thin walls in my apartment, I totally would’ve been screaming at my iPad. I guess in that sense, Shepard was very successful.
The Conclusion
I remember reading Shepard’s debut novel a few years ago, and I tingled at how well she was able to capture the emotions of her characters. Whether she’s tackling science fiction, or contemporary romance, her characters always have depth that make you want to keep turning the page. Swipe Right is no exception. The slow-burn allows you to become invested in Kieran’s exploration and discovery, as well as Pen’s unshakeable loyalty and admiration. I love these two women, and I love Shepard for bringing them into my life. This is definitely an author everyone needs to have on their bookshelf.
TLDR (too long didn’t read)
A woman enlists the help of her best friend to get back into the dating game and help her set up an app. After a string of bad dates, she soon may realize that her best friend could be her greatest love.
Excerpt from Swipe Right by Tagan Shepard
“Martinis? Your date went that well, did it? Thanks for buying me a drink.”
I plucked the skewer of olives out of both glasses and tossed them onto a cocktail napkin. Then I grabbed one drink and tipped it back like a shot. I could almost hear the hiss of anger steaming out of me as the ice-cold alcohol tempered it.
For a minute or two Abby and Pen were frozen in place, open-mouthed and staring at me. My anger started to crack through the martinis’ ice crust. As I opened my mouth to argue, they both snapped into action. Pen took an impressive sip from her wine and Abby started rinsing the shaker.
“It was like that, huh?” Pen asked as another martini landed on the bar in front of me.
As soon as Abby left to serve another couple at the other end of the bar, I started ranting about my disaster date.
Yes, it was a rant and it was extremely undignified, but if anyone had reason to rant, it was me. Luckily for me, I had the best friend in the world and she listened intently, peppering my monologue with indignant grunts at all the right places. When I mentioned Carla’s comments about my degree her face got so red I thought she was having a heart attack. When I told her about storming out after only paying for my part of the meal, she hooted and clapped her approval. Abby shot us a smile and that anger I’d been carrying melted another inch.
“She’s barking up the wrong tree if she thinks title agents are rich. I can’t even get you to buy me lunch,” Pen said, pushing her empty glass away and reaching over the bar to grab a bottle of water. “Maybe we should ask where she went to college. She’s not real bright.”
She emptied her water bottle and took both my hands. Her palms were so soft and her grip was light but sure. “Tonight was terrible and I’m sorry, Kieran. But hey, you got the bad date out of the way, so it can only go up from here, right?”
“Why would you jinx me like that?”
Pen laughed, but her face sobered quickly. She looked into my eyes and, as always when she held my gaze like this, I felt safe. She’d looked at me like that when Nick left. And when Alex left. Pen was always the one who made me feel better.
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Bits and Bobs
ISBN number: 9781642472448
Publisher: Bella Books
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